Left For Dead [malec fanfiction] [complete]

Twenty Nine: The End of the Beginning

Chaos. That's what it was like inside the Institute when the three men went inside to inspect the damage. There were small fires breaking out everywhere as equipment exploded and the torches attached to the walls fell to the floor, setting the wood aflame.

"Jesus Christ," Magnus muttered under his breath. "They did all of this?"

"I guess so. Come on. We need to find Jace and Clary. Find whatever weapons to arm yourselves with. I'll go and grab the supplies we got earlier," ordered Alec. "We'll meet up outside the gates. Stick together."

"Stick together? How can we do that when you're taking off like you always do?" spat Simon. "If Isabelle were here she'd tell you to not play the hero. You know she would."

A scream made them all jump. A crowd of people raced past them with nothing but fear on their faces.

Alec dodged them by quickly moving aside. "Fine. Let's all go in together but stay close, okay? If we get separated, we're basically fucked. So stick together and stay alert. Let's go."

The basement where both their rooms were and where their supplies were hidden away was nearly impossible to get to. People were climbing over each other just to be the first to escape and it wasn't just each other they were climbing over. When the crowd thinned out a little, Alec could see dozens upon dozens of dead bodies all laid out on the floor in the hall. It took every ounce of his willpower not to vomit everywhere.

"Forsaken did this?" Simon's voice was shaky as he stumbled over the corpses. "Because I refuse to believe that zombies did this. They don't just leave their victims out in the open like this. They eat them."

Magnus nodded. "He's not wrong. This isn't a feeding. This is a massacre. These Forsaken are out for blood, Alec. Let's grab our stuff, find Jace and Clary and get the fuck out of here as fast as we can before we end up like these poor souls."

"Agreed," said Alec. He quickly ducked into his and Magnus' room before shutting the door behind him and locking it. "Get the stuff. Top drawer under the shirts."

Simon grimaced as he opened the drawer. "Thank god it's not underneath anything else. I'd say forget it and let's go."

"It's clean clothes, you idiot. You know for a smart guy, you're really dumb sometimes," Magnus snapped at him. "Here. Since you're squeamish, you carry the canned stuff. I need to make sure Alec makes it to Clary and Jace and I can't do that with full hands."

The door suddenly burst open. A Forsaken the size of Alec rushed in with a roar unlike anything they've ever heard before and made a move for Simon. Simon yelled just as Magnus jumped in front of him to wrestle the zombie to the ground.

"Magnus!" Alec yelled over the noise. "I can't get a clear shot!"

Magnus grunted with exertion. "Go! Find Jace and Clary! I'll catch up with you guys and see if I can cause a distraction!"

Alec didn't want to leave Magnus alone but he had to find his brother and Clary before it was too late. Taking one last look back at Magnus, both he and Simon made their way to the door and out into the hall again.

"Where was Jace when you last saw him?" whispered Simon. The hall was quiet now, but they still to remain silent and alert in case there were any zombies left skulking around.

"He said he was being moved to weapons storage. Where he went after that, I have no idea-get down!" Alec shoved Simon down behind a turned over bed in the middle of the corridor just as a Forsaken walked past. It sniffed the air, looked around for a moment, then let out a bone chilling cry that echoed through the whole building.